Lifting device for snow removing mechanism



Jan. 17, 1939.. w. E. KLAUER 2,144,313

LIFTI NG DEVICE FOR SNOW REMOVING MECHANISM Original Filed Aug. 12, 1956 8 Sheets-Sheet l P3111 17, 1939. w. E. KLAUER 2,144,313 I LIFTING DEVICE FOR SNOW REMOVING MECHANISM Original Filed Aug. 12, 1936 s Sheets-Sheet 2 amen/tom Jan. W, 1939. W. E. KLAUER LIFTING DEVICE FOR SNOW REMOVING MECHANISM a Sheet-Sheet 3 Original Filed Aug. 12, 1936 l l bllll hm mm Jan. W, 1939.

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LIFTING DEVICE FOR SNOW REMOVING MECHANISM Original Filed Aug. 12, 1936 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 Patented Jan. 17, 1939 -MECHANIS Walter-E. Klauer, Dubuque, Iowa Original application August 12, 1936, Serial No. 95,688. Divided and this application August 12, 1936, Serial No. 95,690

11 Claims.

The present invention relates to lifting devices only during a short period of the year. The advantage of the use of trucks as compared to tractors is that such devices can move easily from one place to another as required at a. high rate of speed, which is almost a necessity.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide power driven snow removal mechanism of a practical and eflicient type which is arranged so that it can be readily mounted on and removed from a truck. Both the snow remover and the power unit for driving the same are easily and readily demountable. In this manner, the mechanism may be applied to a standard truck, which is used during the snow season to carry the snow removing mechanism, and may be used during the remainder of the year for hauling purposes as a freight vehicle.

One of the special features by which this result isaccomplished resides in a'special frame which acts as a carrier for the snow remover and its lifting mechanism, and which is" mountable as a unit on the front of a truck in'such a manner that it rests on one of the truck chassis members and is supported directly thereby.

It is quite usual to have a snow remover mounted on the front of a vehicle in such a manner that it can be lifted or lowered either to pass over obstructions or to move at a given distance above the, surface of the ground or road. In the past, however, and particularly with the rotary type of plow, to which my invention especially relates, the snow remover has been mounted in such a manner that it turns about an axis or pivot in its rising and falling movement. Such an arrangement tilts the snow remover either forward or backward, and throws it far out of line so that it does not act in its proper and intended manner. A further object of the present invention therefore is to provide a mounting for a snow remover on a vehicle such that it is capable of a substantially straight up and down movea specific mounting for giving this result. This mounting both acts as a guide to keep the snow remover in vertical position, as a carrying mechanism for the snow remover, and also as a thrust resisting mechanism for imparting the force ex- 5 erted on the plow by the resistance of the snow to the chassis of the vehicle.

Furthermore, the lifting mechanism for raising and lowering the snow remover is generally of a heavy and complicated nature. An object 1. of the invention is to provide a simple lifting mechanism which is relatively light in weight and which is yet strong and effective- Also, the 1ii't ing arrangement is so designed as to avoid'blocking the radiator of the truck. One of the princill pal features by which this result is accomplished resides in the fact that most of the parts of the lifting mechanism are under tension, and can thus be made in a simplified and'considerably lightened form. Another important part of the Q invention is the arrangement of the lifting devices at opposite sides of the vehicle.

Furthermore, in vertically movable snow removers heretofore known there has been a. considerable disadvantage in that the means for raising the two sides of the mechanism often do not work together and in synchronism. One side of such a device may rise as much as eight inches before the other side rises at all. Of course this often defeats the whole purpose of raising the a snow remover, since instead of giving a level out at a given height, a sloping cut is obtained. Furthermore, it causes considerable strain on the parts and thus reduces the life of the device.

Another object of the invention then is to pro- 3' vide an arrangement which will absolutely prevent one side of the snow remover from rising faster than the other, but will equalize at all times the motion of the two sides so that thesnow remover is kept absolutely parallel to the road surface.

A further feature of the invention resides in an arrangement by which a rotary type of snow remover may be separated easily and quickly detached from the remainder of the device, and a 4' plow of another type substituted therefor in such a manner that the second plow can be raised and lowered by the same arrangement which supports the rotary snow remover. More especially, I provide a device in which the removal of four 50 pins is all that is necessary to take of! the rotary plow and replace it by a push plow or other construction. I

still another object of the invention resides in the. provision of a novel thrust bar for resisting n remover. this bar comprising members under tension and under compression so that a light and simple structure of considerable strength is provided.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear more fully from the following description, particularly when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which form a part thereof.

In the drawings: v

Fig. l is a side elevation'of a snow remover emo ying y invention and shown as mounted on a truck.

Fig. la is a continuation of Fig. 1, showing the power unit on a truck.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1. I

Fig. 2a is a continuation of Fig. 2 showing in top plan view the arrangement of Fig. 1a, with the power unit removed.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view showing the snow remover frame.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the unitary frame.

Fig. 5 is a detail side elevation showing the lifting, guiding and equalizing mechanism.

Fig. 6 is a front view of one side of this mechanism with the snow remover disconnected.

Fig. 7 is a top plan view of one side of the mechanism shown in Fig. 5 with parts broken away.

Fig. 8 is a cross section on the line 8-4 of Fig. 8.

Fig. 9 is a detail view of the arrangement for holding the snow remover in raised position.

Fig. 10 is a detail showing of the rear end of the push bar support.

As shown in Fig. 1, the snow remover is mounted on a truck A of any standard type. This truck has a chassis consisting of longitudinal members 2, a front cross member 4 and a rear cross member 6. The chassis is mounted on wheels 8, supported by axles such as the front axle iii. The wheels, preferably the rear wheels, are driven by a motor mounted in the hood l2 and provided with a radiator I. The truck also has a cab it of any suitable type.

Mounted on the rear end of the truck is the power unit B. This power unit consists of a motor or engine i8 controlled by a throttle which may be operated by a lever 22 inside the cab l6 through a"flexible or Bowden cable 24. The unit B also includes a gasoline tank 26 for supplying fuel to the engine and a suitable pump for forcing a liquid such as oil under pressure into a supply tank 28. The motor drives a clutch which is mounted in a housing 30 and is controlled through a link and lever system 32 by a lever 34 in the cab of the truck. The clutch is adapted to couple and uncouple a shaft to and from the motor l8.

C indicates in general the snow remover. It

consists in the preferred form of a casing having side walls 28, a bottom wall and scraper blade 40 and a rear wall 42. An opening in the rear wall 42 communicates with the interior of a fan casing 48 in which is mounted a fan for ejecting snow through the spout 48. Within the casing formed by walls 38, I0 and 42 are mounted three augers or conveyers 50 on horizontal vertically spaced axes. These augers are all driven, by a suitable chain drive mechanism 41 from a sprocket mounted on a shaft 49, to feed snow towardsthecenter ofthecasingsothatitcan rearward movement of the lower end of a snow.

pass through the opening into the fan casing 40.

The snow removing mechanism is driven through a shaft mechanism running underneath the truck. It is desirable to be able to vary the position of the back end of this driving shaft, so that its angular'relation to the body of the truck may be changed. In this manner it is possible to avoid obstructions extending below the truck, and thus to apply the snow removing mechanism to trucks of varying types. 1

In order to be able to shift the rear end of the drive shaft while driving it at all times from the power unit B, which is relatively fixed on the truck, the arrangement shown in Figs. 1a and 2a is provided.

The shaft driven by the clutch extends forwardly of the clutch casing 30. On the end of the clutch casing is mounted a casing 53, in such a. manner that the casing is capable of turning with respect to the clutch housing 30. The whole casing 53 is oil-tight, so that the mechanism may run in oil, and is preferably formed of welded steel.

At its lower end the casing 53 supports a stub shaft 51. Pinions on the shafts are connected in driving relation by an endless chain. The front and rear walls of the casing are suitably held in spaced relation.

It is evident that with this construction the position of the shaft 51 may be adjusted transversely of the truck while at the same time this shaft is always driven by the power unit when the clutch is engaged. Suitable means such as are disclosed in my application S. N. 95,688 above referred to are provided to hold the casing in its adjusted positions. It is obvious that by this arrangement the casing 53 may be held in a given angular position.

Shaft 51 carries a universal joint 65 which drives a shaft section 66. Section 66 is mounted in a flexible or self-aligning bearing 61 which allows variation of the angular position of the shaft with respect to the hearing. In front of the hearing 61 is arranged a universal joint 68 which drives another shaft section 69. The front end 10 of shaft 69 is reduced in cross section and fits into a coupling member H in keyed relation thereto. The members 10 and Ii are slidable endwise with respect to each other. Member ii is connected by a universal joint I2 to a shaft 13 which is fixed in the snow remover and drives the rotary augers and the fan thereof.

Various possible mountings may be used for the intermediate bearing 61. In the form shown, the bearing 61 is mounted through angle members H on the front axle ill of the vehicle.

The mounting of the snow remover on the truck will now be described.

The snow remover is carried by a frame having transverse front top and bottom members 92 and 93, transverse rear top and bottom members 94 and 95, top side members 91, vertical members 96, and horizontal bottom members 98 which support the ends of scraper 40 forming the bottom portion of the wall of the auger casing.

I provide a unitary frame which may be easily applied to and removed from a truck for carrying the snow remover and the mechanism for manipulating the same. This frame is shown in Figs. 4 to 8.

The supporting and guiding unitary frame for the plow includes a front cross member I02 adapted to be secured by bolts I04 to the front cross piece 4 of the chassis and side plates I06 adapted to be secured by bolts I to the side frame members 2 of the chassis. The cross member I02 has secured thereto and above it another cross member II2 which extends out beyond the sides of the chassis frame. It will be noted (Fig. 8) that member II2 also extends rearwardly slightly beyond member I02, and that this extension rests on the top of front chassis member 4. In this fashion the chassis member supports the weight of the snow remover directly and the whole load thereof is not carried by the bolts.

Both the members I02 and H2 are angle irons. The side members I06 extend forwardly of the chassis frame and of the cross member I02 and at their forward ends support vertically arranged T-shaped rails having leg portions H4 bolted to the extensions II5 of the side plates and cross portions or arms I I6. Plates I26 are secured to and extend downwardly from the ends of the cross member H2, and angle members I20 are secured to the side pieces I06. The parts of this frame are preferably both riveted andwelded together, so that the whole frame acts as a unit which may be secured bodily to the truck and will serve as the connection between the snow remover and the vehicle.

Guide blocks or slide members I I6 are provided with T-shaped slots I20 which fit over the arms of the T rail and thus the blocks IIO are guided thereby for vertical sliding movement. Pins I22 pass through the blocks H8 and through the arms or brackets I24 secured on the cross member 94 of the plow frame, one of these brackets being arranged on each side of each block I I8. Thus the plow frame is guided at both sides for straight up and down movement.

For raising and lowering the plow a special hydraulic arrangement is provided. Through the pairs of parallel plates I26 and I28 are inserted pins I30 on which are pivotally mounted blocks I32 supporting transverse pins I34.

The pins I34 provide pivots for hydraulic cylinders I36, one on each side of the snow remover, in which are slidably arranged pistons I38.

Secured to the frame side members I06 at points to the rear of the front cross chassis member are uprights I40, which are braced by links I42 connected at one end to the uprights and at the other end to the ends of the transverse member I I2. Pivoted to the upper end of the uprights are beams or links I44, preferably I beams. These beams carry blocks I46 to which are pivoted the pistons I38 and links I48 which at their other ends are traversed by the pins I22 in the neighborhood of the outer brackets. I24.

' Of course one of these lifting devices is provided on each side of the plow, and the other ends of the beam I44 are connected by a spacer and bracing rod I50. It will be noted that this provides a simple and convenient mechanism for raising and lowering the snow remover without blocking in any manner the front of the radiator of the truck. This is a special advantage since when such trucks are in operation there is danger that the engine will become overheated if the radiator is blocked.

The hydraulic cylinders I36 are supplied with fluid under pressure through flexible pipes I52, releasable connections I54 and pipes I66. Pipes I56 are connected to a valve chest I58 in which is a valve controlled by linkage system I60 through a handle I62 located in the cab of the truck. The details of this valve form no part of the invention, and it is suflicient to state that when the valve is moved to one position the piston will be caused to rise, while in the other position it will drop. Fluid under pressure is supplied to the valve chest I58 from the tank 20.

In order to take the load off of this hydraulic system when the truck is being driven over long distances and the snow remover is not in use, I may provide pins I6I adapted to pass through holes in the T rails II4 just below the blocks III! when the same are in raised position. These pins may be secured to the T rails by chains I63 so that they will not be lost. Preferably the pins have pointed ends and annular grooves I64 at points spaced from the ends, so that the pressure caused by the weight of the plow exerted through engagement of blocks II8 with the ends of-"the pin will cause the grooves I64 to engage the sides of the openings in the rails H4 and thus prevent the pins from slipping out of position even though subjected to the shocks caused by inequalities in the road.

Additional mechanism is provided to make certain that one side of the plow does not rise faster than the other, and to insure leveling of the snow remover at all times.- Brackets I66 secured to the, upper ends of the T-shaped rails I I4 support a shaft I60 which extends across the front of the snow remover. At each side of the snow remover are arranged levers I both keyed to the shaft. Links I12 are each pivoted at one end to one of said levers I10 and at the other ends engage the pins I22. This arrangement prevents one side of the plow from moving faster or slower than the other, since any motion imparted to one side will be equalized on the other side through the links, levers and shaft. It will be noted that when the plow is in its raised position, shown in Fig. 5, the levers I10 are substantially upright, and thus also help to take the load off the hydraulic mechanism.

In order to brace the bottom of the plow against backward tilting because of the pressure of snow, a special type of thrust bar is provided. A plate I14 is bolted or otherwise suitably secured to the chassis frame. This plate has a transverse wall I16 in which is threaded a lockable bolt I18. The plate is also provided with two horizontal slots I80. A bracing arm I02 extending diagonally downward from the plate has its end bent over into a parallel position, and carries a cross plate or stop I84 at its end to be en gaged by the screw I10. Two bolts I06 are arranged at the end of the bar I02 and pass through the slot I80. By this arrangement the position of the bracer may be adjusted longitudinally of the truck, and it may be locked in any adjusted position.

A tension member I88 is pivoted on one of the longitudinal chassis frame members and extends substantially vertically downwardly. The lower end is connected by a pin I00 to the end of the bracer I82. Also pivoted on the same pin is a thrust bar I92 consisting of an I beam. The front end of this thrust bar is secured by a pin I04 to the lower corner of the plow supporting frame. Obviously one of these bars is arranged on each side of the snow remover.

The fan casing 46 is mounted to rotate for example in the manner shown in the Wandscheer Patent No. 1,886,069. It is important to be able to shift the position of the spout 40 from one side to the other of the snow remover so that the direction of the stream of snow may be changed. For this purpose, I provide a hydraulic device for controlling the position of the fan casing. A

lever I in the cab of the truck through a lever and linkage system I 98 controls a valve in a valve box 200, supplied with fluid under pressure from the reservoir 28. Pipes2ll2 extend from this reservoir to the front of the truck and are connected through couplings 204 to flexible hoses 208.

Mounted on the cross member 84 is a bracket which supports one end of a hydraulic cylinder 2|2. The member 94 also supports a pair of spaced U-shaped rails 2 between which slides a cross head.. A piston slidable in the cylinder 2l2 has an extension which is connected by a pin to the cross head. A pin 222 carried by the cross head forms a pivot for one end of a link 224 which at its other end engages a pivot pin fixed in the rear wall of the fan casing. Pipes 206 on opposite sides of the plow are connected respectively to pipes opening into opposite ends of the cylinder 212. It is evident that by admitting fluid under pressure to one side or the other of the piston the crossv head will be caused to move and will shift thespout 48 from one side to the other.

While I have described herein some embodiments of my invention, I wish it to be understood that I do not intend to limit myself thereby except within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle having a frame, a power operated snow remover, and means at opposite sides of the vehicle frame to guide the snow remover for linear vertical movement, means to raise and lower the snow remover with respect to the vehicle, each of said last means comprising an arm pivoted on said vehicle, means connecting said arm to the snow remover, a substantially vertically disposed cylinder at the side of the frame, means connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston slidable in the cylinder, said piston being pivoted directly to said arm, and means to supply fluid under pressure to said cylinder.

2. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle having a frame, a snow remover, and means at opposite sides of the vehicle to guide the snow remover for linear vertical movement, means to raise and lower the snow remover with respect to the vehicle, each of said last means comprising an arm pivoted on said vehicle and extending forwardly therefrom, means connecting said arm to the snow remover, a substantially vertically disposed cylinder at the side of the frame, means connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston slidable in the cylinder, said piston being pivoted to said arm between the connection to/the snow remover and the pivot thereof, and means to supply fluid under pressure to said cylinder.

3. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle,

I a snow remover, a frame for said snow remover,

means to guide said frame for vertical movement with respect to the vehicle, and means at opposite sides of the vehicle to raise and lower the frame and snow remover with respect to the vehicle, each of said last means comprising an upright tension member secured to the vehicle, a brace secured to the tension member and to the vehicle, an arm pivoted on said tension memher, a link pivoted to said arm and to the snow remover, and means pivoted to said'arm between the points of connection of said arm with said upright and link to exert an upward force there- '4. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, a frame for said snow remover, means to guide said frame for vertical movement with respect to the vehicle, and means at opposite sides of the vehicle to raise and lower the frame and snow remover with respect to the vehicle, each of said last means comprising an upright tension member secured to the vehicle, a brace secured to the tension member and to the vehicle, an arm pivoted on said tension member, a link pivoted to said arm, a lug on said frame, a pin passing through said lug and said link, and means pivoted to said arm between the points of connection of said arm with said upright and link to exert an upward pressure thereon.

5. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, and means at opposite sides of the vehicle to raise and lower the snow remover with respect to the vehicle, each of said last means comprising an upright tension member secured to the vehicle, a brace secured to the tension member and to the vehicle, an arm piv oted on said tension member, a link pivoted to said arm and to the snow remover, a cylinder, means connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston slidable in the cylinder, said piston being pivoted to said arm, and means to supply fluid under pressure to said cylinder.

6. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, means to mount said snow remover on the vehicle for vertical movement with respect thereto means to raise and lower said snow remover comprising an upright member secured to the vehicle, a brace extending laterally from said upright member and also secured to the vehicle, an arm pivoted on the top end of said upright member and extending forwardly therefrom, a link pivoted at one end to said arm and at the other end to said snow remover, a hydraulic mechanism comprising a cylinder, a universal joint connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston movable in said cylinder, said piston being connected to said arm between said link and the pivot of said arm, a source of fluid under pressure, means to conduct fluid from said source to said piston, and means operable by the driver of the vehicle to control the supply of fluid to the cylinder.

'7. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, means to mount said snow remover on the vehicle for vertical movement with respect thereto, means on each side of the vehicle to raise and lower said snow remover comprising an upright member secured to the vehicle, a brace extending laterally from said upright member and also secured to the vehicle, an arm pivoted on the top end of said upright member and extending forwardly therefrom, a link pivoted at one end to said arm and at the other end to said snow remover, a hydraulic mechanism comprising a cylinder, a universal joint connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston movable in said cylinder, said piston being connected to said arm between said link and the pivot of said arm, a source of fluid under pressure, means to conduct fluid from said source to said piston, and means to equalize the effect of said raising means on opposite sides of the snow remover.

8. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, said snow remover comprising a horizontal shaft, snow conveying means on said shaft, and means to drive said shaft, a frame for said snow remover, means to guide said frame for vertical movement with respect to the vehicle, a lug on said frame, and means to raise and lower the frame and snow remover with respect to the vehicle, said last means comprising an upnection of said arm with said upright and link,

means to supply fluid under pressure to said cylinder, said last means comprising a source of fluid under pressure mounted on the vehicle,

and means to conduct fluid from said source to.

said cylinder, said vehicle having a drivers seat, means operable from the driver's seat to control the flow of fluid to said cylinder, and a pin passing through said lug and said link.

9. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, said snow remover comprising a horizontal shaft, snow conveying means on said shaft, and means to drive said shaft, a frame for said snow remover, means to guide said frame for vertical movement with respect to the vehicle, a lug on said frame, and means to raise and lower the frame and snow remover with respect to the vehicle, said last means comprising an upright tension member secured to the vehicle, a brace secured to the tension member and to the vehicle, an arm pivoted on said tension member, a link pivoted to said arm, a cylinder, a

universal joint connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston slidable in the cylinder, said piston being pivoted to said arm between the points of connection of said arm with said upright and link, means to supply fluid under pressure to said cylinder, said last means comprising a source of fluid under pressure mounted on the vehicle, and means to conduct fluid from said source to said cylinder, said vehicle having a drivers seat, means operable from the driver's seat to control the flow of fluid to said cylinder, a pin passing through said lug and said link, said guide means comprising members mounted on the vehicle, and elements guided for movement by said members, said pins passing through said last elements.

10. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, said snow remover comprising a horizontal shaft, snow conveying means on said shaft, and means to drive said shaft, a frame for, said snow remover, means to guide said frame for vertical movement with respect to the vehicle, a lug on said frame, and means to raise and lowerthe frame and snow remover with resure to said cylinder, said last means comprising a source of fluid under pressure mounted on the vehicle, and means to conduct fluid from said source to said cylinder, said vehicle having a driver's seat, means operable from the driver's seat to control the flow of fluid to said cylinder, a pin passing through said lug and said link, and means to equalize the lifting effect of said two sets of lifting means, said last means including members engaging said pins.

11. In a snow removing mechanism, a vehicle, a snow remover, said snow remover comprising a horizontal shaft, snow conveying means on said shaft, and means to drive said shaft, 'a frame for said snow remover, means to guide said frame for vertical movement with respect to the vehicle, a lug on said frame, and means to raise and lower the frame and snow remover with respect to the vehicle, said last means comprising an upright tension member secured to the vehicle, a brace secured to the tension member and to the vehicle, an arm pivoted on said tension member, a link pivoted to said arm, a cylinder, a universal joint connecting said cylinder to the vehicle, a piston slidable in the cylinder, said piston being pivoted to said arm between the points of connection of said arm with said upright and link, means to supply fluid under pressure to said cylinder, said last means comprising a source-of fluid under pressure mounted on the vehicle, and means to conduct fluid from said source to said; cylinder, said vehicle having a driver's seat, means operable from the driver's seat to control the flow of fluid to said cylinder, 9. pin passing through said lug and said link, said guide means compris ing members mounted on the vehicle, and elements guided for movement by said members, said pins passing through said last elements, and means to equalize the lifting effect of said two sets of lifting means, said last means including members engaging said pins.

WALTER I. mm 

